Any piano dipABRSM repertoire advice?

[shopan]

Hey guys. 4 years post-grade 8 and I still don't know what to play for my diploma! I'm thinking:

Bach - Prelude and Fugue No. 15 in G minor
Beethoven - Sonata No. 8 'Pathetique'
Liszt - Petrarch Sonnet 104 (own choice)
Gershwin - Man I love and I got rhythm

Wondering if I should change the Beethoven for something else? I don't think I'm the best at it, and the examiner will probably be able to pick it to pieces  Also there's a bit of a gap between the Liszt and Gershwin? Though I think those pieces are at the time limit. Gah, I don't know!

Pieces that I can play (well, kind of) that are on the list are:
Brahms - Rhapsody in G minor
Chopin - Variations brillantes, Op. 12
Poulenc - Toccata
Ravel - Sonatine
But I'm obviously open to all ideas.

Help very much appreciated.

[kelly_kelly]

Hi shopan! I did DipABRSM 6 months ago I would personally stay away from the Beethoven - it's overplayed, and so as you say the examiners will probably pick it apart. If you were very, very confident in your ability to play it, then it might work, but if you have any doubts, pick something else. The "gap" between the Liszt and Chopin shouldn't be a problem, I don't think - in fact I think it's pretty standard. For reference, my programme was:

Debussy - Ballade (own choice)
Schubert - Sonata in A major, D. 664
Liszt - Sonetto 123 (I learned 104 afterward by the way - I love 123 but 104 is even better)
Bartok - 5 and 6 from 6 Dances in Bulgarian Rhythm

Somewhat risky in that there was no baroque or even straight "classical" (the Schubert is somewhat transitional), but it worked - 39 on the recital portion!

Anyway, for your programme, I would advise looking at a different classical sonata or set of variations (basically anything but the Moonlight ). Alternatively, if you want to take a "risk", you could just substitute the Ravel Sonatine for the Beethoven - you could definitely argue that the programme would be balanced, with Bach for baroque, Liszt for romantic, Ravel for French/impressionist, and Gershwin for "jazz".

Best of luck!
Kelly

[shopan]

Thank you for replying, good advice and late congratulations on your diploma Could you give anymore general advice? Anything you wished you had prepared more? I haven't actually come across anybody that's done their dipabrsm, hah, so I'm jumping to the chance to ask any question

Oh and Sonnet 104, my god I'm in love!

Many thanks
Sophie

[kevinr]

That programme seems fine to me if you're happy with it.

Although the Pathetique Sonata is indeed one of the most often played, the fact remains that it is nonethless on the list. I can't think that the examiners would hold that against you. They will surely have heard every Beethoven sonata a zillion times before anyway.

Incidentally I did the DipABRSM a couple of years ago and my programme was:

Bach Prelude and Fugue in E major, WTC Book 2
Beethoven Moonlight Sonata (!)
Ives "The Alcotts" (3rd movt from Concord Sonata) (own choice)
Ravel Sonatine


If you did get rid of the Beethoven then I agree with Kelly, the Ravel would seem to fit well and it is also a complete sonata (albeit in a small package).

It would mean that you didn't have a work from the classical era, but then the Ravel does have quite a classical feel to it so I think the program would be quite balanced.

One decision you will have to make if you haven't already is in what order to do the different parts of the exam.

I opted for:

1. Quick study
2. Recital
3. Viva

I reckoned that I wouldn't be in the mood for the QS after playing a full program. Also I wouldn't relax well in the Viva if if I still had the other parts coming up.

When you write your program notes, be aware that anything in there may be picked up in the viva so be prepared to talk about it.

[keyboardclass]

Hey, I did the Bach!  I opted for what I loved - Beet op 54, Berceuse, Bach and Messiaen.

[shopan]

If you did get rid of the Beethoven then I agree with Kelly, the Ravel would seem to fit well and it is also a complete sonata (albeit in a small package).

It would mean that you didn't have a work from the classical era, but then the Ravel does have quite a classical feel to it so I think the program would be quite balanced.

Hm yeah, I think I might opt for the Ravel, though since it's 10 minutes shorter I could still fit a short classical piece in? Any recommendations? I guess I should be finding this out for myself but hey Thank you for the advice.

Hey, I did the Bach!  I opted for what I loved - Beet op 54, Berceuse, Bach and Messiaen.

Hurrah for the Bach! How did you interpret the prelude and fugue, just out of interest?

[kevinr]

Hm yeah, I think I might opt for the Ravel, though since it's 10 minutes shorter I could still fit a short classical piece in? Any recommendations? I guess I should be finding this out for myself but hey Thank you for the advice.

How about a Schubert Impromptu? There are 2 sets of 4, D899 and D935.

No 1 of each set might be a bit long for the slot you need to fill. D935 no 2 might be considered not technically difficult enough. But the others seem fair game.

There are also the 3 pieces D946. These are Impromptus is all but name. It may be that they were going to be another set of 4 Impromptus that never got completed.

There are plenty of renditions of each of these on Youtube.

[keyboardclass]

Here's a tip for your notes - the fugue theme has words, it was originally from a cantata.  I'm not home, if you wait till next week I can source that.  Start the Prelude trill on the lower note, Bach does on long notes.

I've just remembered it's at 5:20 here:

[kelly_kelly]

Although the Pathetique Sonata is indeed one of the most often played, the fact remains that it is nonethless on the list. I can't think that the examiners would hold that against you. They will surely have heard every Beethoven sonata a zillion times before anyway.

Agreed, I wouldn't discourage the Pathetique if showpan were confident in her ability to play it well, but since she had reservations about it anyway, it seems safer to choose something else.

showpan: If you're dropping the Pathetique for the Ravel (which I would be inclined to advise), maybe try a set of variations? Haydn's Variations in F minor or Mozart's Duport Variations should fit well... the other sets (Mozart K. 455, Beethoven F major and C minor) might be a bit too long, but I'm not sure.

Regarding general questions, I think the biggest thing I would have changed was preparing better for the Viva. The examiners LOVED my programme notes, but were less enthusiastic about my actual spoken performance... so make sure you're familiar with lots of things they "might" possibly ask. I ended up with 15/25, which was well above passing, but I was somewhat disappointed since I always thought it would be my best section. Regarding the quick study, just remember that actual notes are less important than observing dynamics, style, etc. - a wooden, note-perfect performance will score lower than a performance with a few flubs that captures the "essence". Also, make sure you isolate the difficult parts first rather than just reading through, because full read-throughs can take up substantial portions of the 5 min. preparation. 

I actually took the exam twice - I failed the recital section by two points the first time (in all fairness, it was just 6 months after grade , passed the other sections but decided to retake the Viva in addition to the recital since I thought I could improve it. So when I retook the exam 6 months ago, I was only doing the recital and viva. When I took the exam the first time, I did the recital first, then quick study, and ended with viva. I chose to do the recital first since I was most nervous about it (as kevinr said), and thought it would impair my performance on the quick study and viva (which require more "on the spot" skills) if I was worrying about it.

I hope this helps! If you want more support, the ABRSM website has a fairly active forum in which more people will know about the diplomas (this particular forum is US-based, so fewer people have experience with them).

Kelly

[cherylim94]

Sorry to bump in!
But how would a recital with:
Scarlatti - Two Sonatas in G Major
Beethoven - Sonata Op. 26 No. 12 in A Flat Major
Rachmaninoff - Prelude in G Major, Op. 32 No. 5
Bartok - Mikrokosmos Volume 6 No. 149 and 153
sound like?

Well, my exam is in less than two months time and it's absolutely too late to change anything anyway...

[kelly_kelly]

Hi cherylim94,

As you say, it is too late to change anything, but for what it's worth your programme looks good to me (balanced in terms of contrasting styles, tempos, etc.). It does seem like it might be a bit on the short side (though I don't know for sure) depending on which repeats you take, so make sure you're aware of the timing (i.e. perform the whole thing and make sure it comes to at least 31.5 minutes). The Bartok is a fun ending piece (I used it too , except I played 152 instead of 149 ) Best of luck!

[invictious]

Speaking of contrast, there seems to be a lack of pieces in minor keys..

but again for me I probably had too many pieces in minor keys for my programme.

[kelly_kelly]

Speaking of contrast, there seems to be a lack of pieces in minor keys..

but again for me I probably had too many pieces in minor keys for my programme.

I don't think key choice is relevant as long as the pieces aren't all similar in style and mood. I used all major keys (except Bartok which was more modal), and the examiners seemed to like my programme.

[cherylim94]

Thanks for the replies
Originally, I was meant to play Rach's Prelude in C Minor and Bach's Prelude and Fugue in F Minor (as well as Brahm's Rhapsody in G Minor). That wouldn't have a "contrast" with the rest of the program because they were all keys with flats. But I changed my teacher, and didn't like my initial program at all so I changed most pieces too.

I must say, it's a little short. The maximum time I've hit is about 30 minutes, and I was aware of the time limit as well. I was going to learn another Bartok but...
I guess I'll take more time when transiting between pieces then. The Beethoven is also a massive workout (it's very long per se) so I'd need to rest quite a bit before starting Rach.

[iratior]

Point of information:  Is shopan allowed to do Mozart or do the examiners think that's too easy?

[keyboardclass]

Plenty of Mozart but maybe it's too hard?

[shopan]

Point of information:  Is shopan allowed to do Mozart or do the examiners think that's too easy?

Well there's a few Mozart pieces on the syllabus:
Adagio in B minor, K.540. Mozart Mature Piano Pieces
Sonata in D, K.284
Sonata in C, K.309
Sonata in D, K.311
Sonata in Bb, K.570
10 Variations on ‘Les hommes pieusement’ (‘Unser dummer Pöbel meint’), K.455
9 Variations on a Minuet by Duport, K.573

Although I think I'm more inclined to stick with the Bach.. it's more of a problem as to what goes after it for me

Sophie

[iratior]

shopan, you just rekindled my interest in K. 284.  I have an old Schirmer edition of Mozart sonatas that doesn't give the K. numbers, but from looking elsewhere on this web site I figured out which one it is.  The last movement is theme and variations, in which the pianist gets a chance to show off the ability to play in many different styles.  In all but the minor and the last variation, the harmonies gravitate to chords sharper than the key.  When, in the last variation, the harmonies at measures 27-29 become flatter than the key, the contrast is glorious.  This is a piece just waiting for a pianist to make the most of it.

[keyboardclass]

  This is a piece just waiting for a pianist to make the most of it.

I'll bet Mozart's rarely performed at diploma level.

[kelly_kelly]

I'll bet Mozart's rarely performed at diploma level.

I know I haven't been brave enough yet...